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Have you ever sent someone to training or provided coaching just to have them revert back to old behaviors? This is called Drift. Many times when addressing an audience I ask; "when intention and habit meet, which one usually wins?" Habit. Think about it. Habits surround everything we do. They're comfortable. And now they're supposed to do something different? It's like losing weight, a great intention, except for the fact that I have a habit of eating some of the things I know I shouldn't.

I used to have a salesperson, lets call him Joe. Joe would attend our weekly staff meetings. He would attend training on prospecting, networking, cold calling, etc. One of our approaches is a particular way of conducting a Discovery Meeting with five distinct steps. He would always say "I've got it." As I would try to practice with him, he would tell me he's got it and not want to role play. Most people don't like to role play, but role playing is practice, and practice makes permanent. So one day we're meeting with the president of a local corporation and it's Joe's turn to run the Discovery meeting. A meeting approach he's tried before resulting in me taking over the conversation. This time, as he starts his agenda, he loses his train of thought, starts to stumble and goes blank, again. Instead of jumping in and saving the day, I let him try to push through the awkward moment. When he finally turned and asked me if I would continue the conversation, I turned to the prospect, apologized for our lack of preparedness and requested a new meeting date when we would be more prepared. That experience created the foundation for the three step skill transfer process we use today. Explain, show, practice.

Any time you coach or train somebody on a new skill or behavior, it is critical;

  1. They understand why they are doing it.
  2. See a demonstration of it being executed, flawlessly.
  3. Practice until they can perform it at a high level.

This way, when they are under pressure, they won't drift back into old habits. Try the ESP Skill Transfer Process and let us know how it goes.